Page 52 of Foretold

“And now he has women like the stunning Witch Queen in his bed,” I reply, raising my brows. “You’re right. I did him a favor.”

Soren’s gray eyes darken. “August fucked Pandora?”

“Yeah, I think it’s over now, though. I’m a little behind on all the gossip in our friendship group these days,” I admit, grinning at the finished vanilla cake with strawberry frosting. I stick the candles in and light them. “Come on, let’s go find August.”

I move past Sinda, who is guarding the door to the kitchens. “It’s ready.”

“It looks incredible.” He beams, his green eyes lighting up as he follows next to me. He told me he’s never been to the Incubus Kingdom before, and seeing him take in every little detail like a kid in a candy shop makes me happy.

August smiles widely when he opens his bedroom door, his eyes widening as he takes in the two hulking guards behind me.

“Happy birthday,” I say in a sing-song voice.

“Thank you, my queen,” he replies, his lips twitching. “I didn’t expect you to show up today with everything going on.”

I step inside, Soren and Sinda guarding the door. “I couldn’t miss your birthday, you know that.”

Placing the cake on the table in the corner of his bedroom, he sits down and closes his eyes as he makes a wish before blowing out the candles. I pull out the seat next to him and join him,smirking when I realize I didn’t bring a knife, plates, or spoons to eat the cake. Pulling out my ruby dagger from the sheath at my ankle, August laughs as I cut a piece with it and hand it over to him.

“Thank you,” he says, taking a big bite. “It’s perfect, Star.”

There’s a knock at the door, and then in steps Bane, Axe, and Kai.

“Cake?” I ask.

Soren and Sinda join us, too, and I cut them messy pieces of cake with my blade. I feel Bane watching me as I lick the icing off my fingers, but I pretend not to notice. He rests his hand on my shoulder, and a quick vision hits me.

Bane and I laughing together, a beautiful woman sitting on his other side.

She’s laughing too.

“What are we going to do with you, Astrid,” she asks, smirking.

Bane kisses her temple, holding her close.

“Are you okay?” Bane asks me, pulling me back to the present. “Rion is still in the dungeon. We managed to get some information from him, but getting him to talk hasn’t been easy.”

“I’m fine,” I reply, smiling up at him. Aside from the fact that my seer gift is nothing but a means to matchmaking fated mates.

“Hands off our queen, Bane,” Soren growls, his gray eyes narrowed to slits.

Bane scowls but removes his hand.

And it’s then I realize that in my vision, Bane was wearing a crown.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Astrid

When I zip back to Aravelle that evening, Rave is sitting against our bed’s headboard, his elbow resting on his knee, whiskey in his hand. He’s naked, and the position gives me a glimpse of his muscled thigh, and my mouth waters.

“That kind of day, huh?” I ask, removing my boots and sitting down on the bed. He puts his glass on the side table and pulls me on top of him so I’m straddling his hips. His hard, thick cock pokes at my stomach, but he ignores it, instead lifting my chin with his rough fingers and looking me dead in the eye.

“Tell me,” he demands, clearly done waiting for answers. “How did you know my father was dead before anyone else did? You were by my side. There’s no way you could have known…”

I lick my lips, and his gaze drops to the motion. “There are things I haven’t told you, Rave.”

“I don’t want any secrets between us…” he murmurs. Then, when my eyes narrow, he adds, “Anymore.”

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